Loading pallet



y 1958 R. w. CHRONISTER 2.841.350

LOADING PALLET Filed July 21. 1954 y R01 67'? W: (bran Lifer lit-aired States Patent fftce 2,841,359 i ate'nted July 1, 1958 LQADRIG PALLET Robert W. Chronister, Hanover, Pa.

Application-July-Zl, 1%4, Serial No. 444,709

1 Claim. (Cl. 243-129) This invention relates to a loading pallet of the type used for supporting articles which are placed upon the pallets at a packaging station, or the like. After such pallets are loaded, they are lifted and moved to a warehouse, ship, freight car, or the like, where the loaded pallets are stacked one upon another. Since the pallets are shipped with the material placed upon them and return of used pallets to the shipper would be expensive, it is one object of the invention to provide a pallet which is of light weight, but strong, and capable of being manufactured at such low cost that they are dispensible and may be discarded by the person to whom the material is sent.

Another object of the invention is to provide a pallet consisting of a deck or platform which is formed of strong but light weight material, such as corrugated cardboard, legs or supports for the deck being disposed under the deck and firmly, but releasably secured thereto in such manner that decks, legs, and securing members may be furnished to the user in packages and assembled by him according to the number and size of pallets needed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a pallet of such construction that quantities may be stored in a small space by a user until needed.

Another object of the invention is to so mount the legs upon the deck that when the pallet is loaded hooks of a crane may be readily engaged under marginal portions of the deck and the pallet lifted and deposited upon a truck by means of which loaded pallets are to be transported to a warehouse, boat, or the like.

With these and other objects in view, my invention consists of an improved construction and arrangement of parts, one embodiment of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure l is a perspective view of the deck or platform of the pallet;

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing legs applied to the deck;

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the legs secured to the deck;

Figure 4 is a side view of a leg of modified shape;

Figure 5 is a side view of another modified form of 2;

Figure 6 is a side view of a leg of reduced height; and

Figure 7 is a side view of a modified form of leg.

This improved pallet consists briefly of a deck or platform, a plurality of legs or supports, and members by means of which the legs are securely held in place under the deck.

The deck 1 is preferably square and is formed of corrugated cardboard, so that while it is thin and of light weight, it will be quite strong and capable of supporting a heavy load without cracking or bending. Pairs of slits 2 are formed through the deck, and referring to Figure 1, it will be seen that the slits are arranged in rows with the slits of each pair in side by side parallel relation to each other. Three rows of slits have been shown in the drawing, but it will be understood that this number may be varied according to the size of the deck.

The legs 3 consist of blocks which are formed of wood, or other inexpensive material, and these legs are placed under the deck with each leg disposed under a pair of the slits 2. Each leg carries a'pair of staples 4 which are driven into the upper face thereof and project upwardly from the leg and are so located that when the legs are set in place under the deck, the staples will pass through the slits and project upwardly from the deck, as shown in Figure 2. After the staples have been passed upwardly through the slits, and the deck is resting fiat upon the legs, flat metal strips 5 are passed through the protruding portions of the staples and very effectively prevent the staples from moving downwardly through the slits. Therefore, the legs will be firmly held to the deck, but when it is desired to remove the legs from the deck, it is merely necessary to withdraw the strips and the staples may then freely move downwardly through the slits and allow ready removal of the legs. The strips fit snugly through the staples and are not liable to accidentally slide longitudinally out of place. Since the strips are formed of metal, they are not liable to be broken, and as they extend entirely across the deck, they add materially to the strength of the pallet and permit it to carry a heavy load. The fact that the legs are spaced from each other permits hooks of a hoist to be engaged under marginal portions of the deck and a loaded pallet may thus be readily lifted and deposited upon a truck for transfer to a warehouse, ship, or the like.

Modified forms of legs are shown in Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7. The leg 6 shown in Figure 4 tapers towards its upper end and the leg 7 shown in Figure 5 tapers towards its lower end, the leg 6 having a greater area of under face and the leg 7 having a greater area of upper deckengaging surface.

Therefore, these legs will constitute supports which are more sturdy and not liable to tilt over when subjected to transverse strains. The leg 8 shown in Figure 6 is shorter than the legs 5 and may be used when it is desired to increase the number of loaded pallets which may be stacked in a space of a certain height. In Figure 7, the leg 9 is of such length that it will extend the full distance between opposite edges of the deck and when such a leg or support is used, only three will be necessary instead of the nine used in Figures 2 and 3. The pairs of staples l0 driven into the top surface of the support 9 are so arranged that when this support is set in place under a deck the staples will protrude upwardly through the slits in the deck and the metal securing strips may then be passed through the staples and firmly hold the supports in engagement with the deck.

From the foregoing description of the construction of my improved loading pallet, the assembly and operation thereof will be readily understood, and it will be seen that I have provided a simple, inexpensive and efiicient means for carrying out the various objects of the invention.

While I have particularly described the elements best adapted to perform the functions set forth, it is apparent that various changes in form, proportion and in the minor details of construction may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the principles of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what is claimed is:

A collapsible loading pallet comprising a substantially rigid deck, said deck having pairs of spaced parallel slits extending therethrough, said pairs of slits being arranged in spaced parallel rows with the slits in each row in alignment with the slits in all other rows, a detachable continuous support disposed below each row of slits and.

be removed and said deck, supports and strips stored in a minimum of space.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 'Glover Sept. 5, 1882 Hammerl Oct. 21, 1884 Belloif Mar. 13, 1906 V Huber Dec. 25, 1945 v Cahners June 29, 1948 Withers Apr. 14, 1953 Silverman Mar. 30, 1954 Ridge Apr. 20, 1954 Baumann Oct. 12, 1954 

